Steam-radiator.



A. B. NEIMAN & A. L. ADAMS. STEAM RADIATOR.

APPLIOATION FILED JUNE 13, 1911. 1,057,081 Patented Mar. 25, 1913.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

' A. B. NEIMAN & A. L. ADAMS.

STEAM RADIATOR. APPLICATION FILED 1mm 13, 1911.

1,057,081. Patented Mar. 25, 1913.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALVIN B. NEIMAN, NEW YORK, N. Y., AND ALBERT L. ADAMS, OF MON'TCLAIR,NEW

JERSEY ASSIGNORS TO THE NEIMAN MANUFACTURING CO.,

or new YORK, N. Y.-

STEAK-RADIATOR.

T 0 all whom it may concern Be it known that we, i\LVI1\' B. NEIMAN, acitizen of the United States, residing in the borough of Bronx, countyof New York, and State of New York, and ALBERT L'. ADAMS, a citizen ofthe lnited States, residing at Montclair, county of Essex, and State ofNew Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inSteam-Radiators, of which the following is a specification.

Our improvements are designed to afford a self-generating or individualsteam radiator adapted for use where an extraneous source of steamsupply is not available or desirable; a radiator that isportable incharacter and adapted to any emergency or situation, either temporarilyor otherwise.

Another object of our invention is to afford-a simple but effectivecombination of steam generator and radiator in which a maximum of heatmay be quickly and conveniently attained, maintained and diflused, witha minimum expenditure of fuel, and in which provision is also made forregulating and varying the heat emitted to meet actual requirements ofuse, as related to situation, atmospheric conditions, &c., as may befound most expedient.

()ur invention consists in the specific construction and arrangement ofparts hereinafter described and claimed, a distinguishing feature beingtheuse of a sealed coil of peculiar construction in that it comprises asingle, continuous, tortuous chamber of uniform. and relatively smalldiameter throughout, all parts of the serpentine coil above the lowerhorizontal member thereof being inclined downward to insure drainageinto said lower member, and'the latter, which constitutes the steamgenerating chamber, being provlded with means for heating externally. Bythis serpentine construction theaqueous vapor generated in the lowerhorizontal member of the coil rises through the latter and imparts 'itslatent heat thereto, the water of condensation running down thecontinuous downwardly inclined surface of the coil and back to thehorizontal "generating chamber to be reconverted into steam, and so oncontinuously. Hence a comparatively small quantity of water willsilflice for continuous heating as the serpentine coil is sealed to allintents and purposes under ordinary conditions of use As a matterSpecification of Letters Patent.

Application filed June 13, 1911.

Patented Mar. 25, 1913. Serial No. eeaazs.

of precaution however and for convenience in charglng the radiator weprovide the upper extremity of the serpentine coil with 'a combinedinlet and safety valve as here.- inafter' set forth, so that an excessof inter- 'nal steam pressure, should it occur from any ca se, would berelieved automatically, while the valve cup, when the valve is raisedfrom its seat manually, primarily answers the function of a funnel toeffect the introduction of water into the radiator. The lower horizontalmember .of the serpentine coil constituting the generating chamber, is

only partially filled with water, (approximately one half full) so thata clear space is left above the level of the water for the escape andrise of the steam; and the prescribed water level is attained by meansof a pet or test cock in the end of the generator chamber arranged abovethe axial center thereof. We are aware that in a concurrent application,Serial No. 625,712, filed by Alvin B. Neiman, May 8th, 1911, a somewhatsimilar form of radiator is shown in which water is used asaheat-distributing vehicle, the circulation of heated water be ingattained by an uptake connecting the lower and upper parallel members ofan endless coil having intermediate longitudinal parallel members. Inthe present case there is no uptake or direct short circuitor connectionbetween the lower horizontal member and'the upper part of our serpentinecoil, which is not endless, but on the contrary is formed with an upperextremity connected with the lower extremity, (the horizontal member orsteam generating chamber,) only bya single tortuous steam space orchamber of uniform area invcross section throu hout, all the internalsurfaces of which incl ne downward for the purpose of draining the waterof condensation back to the generating chamber below. Furthermore by theuse of steam as a heat-distributing vehicle we can attain a highertemperature owing to the latent heat taken u during the formation of thesteam, sai

latent heat being im arted to the coil above the generator chain er asthe steam condenses. We also render the radiator more portable andconvenient by dispensipg with the weightof all but a very small volumeof water as compared with the water circulating heater and radiatorreferred to.

In order o effectually absorb and dissemi- 60 of the same taken at rightangles to Fig. 4;

nate the latent heatimparted to the serpentine coil by the condensationof the steam, the longitudinal members of the latter are provided withsheet metal radiation plates the hub-flanges of which are forced ontothe peripheral surfaces of the tubes of which said longitudinal membersof the coil are composed, the radiation plates themselves extending inplanes at right angles to the longitudinal axes of said longitudinalmembers, so that the series of radiation plates on one longitudinalmember are inclined with relation to the radiation plates on theadjoining longitudinal member or members. As a result the gaseousproducts of combustion arising from the gas burner as well as thecurrents of air induced thereby, are deilected alternately from side toside as they pass upward in a general vertical course through thesuccessive series of radiationplates, thus insuring the distribution ofthe heat by convection as well as b radiation and reflection, andrendering tie radiator more sensitive and eflective as a heating device.In fact, owing to the relatively small quantity of water used as avehicle and hence the rapidity with which it maybe converted into steam;the exceptional radiating surface provided as compared with the area incross section of the tortuous steam chamber; and to the immediate returnof the water of condensation to the lower steam generating member byreason of the inclination downward of all parts of said serpentine steamchamber toward the lower or steam-generating member, and the inclinationof adjacent series of radiation' plates with relation to each other, ourdevice affords exceptional means for expeditiously, conveniently andeconomically attaining and maintaining a high degree of temperat-urewhere ordinary steam heating systems are not available. Or it may beused as supplemental thereto, and being portable in character, isadapted for special purposes and uses, as an emergency heater. By theprovision of a continuous inclined serpentine steam chamber of uniformdiameter throughout we obviate all pockets, inequalities or depressionsin which the water of condensation might otherwise collect, and therebyobviate noise, and insure uniform conditions and action.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1, is an elevation of ourself-generating-steam radiator; Fig. 2, 'a vertical section taken uponthe plane of line 2-2, Fig. 1; Fig. 3, an end view of the radiator; Fig.4, an-edge elevation, taken upon a larger scale, of one of the radiationplates; Fig. 5, an elevation Fig. 6, a similar view .of one of theradiator plates attached to the lower member of the coil; Fig. 7, is aview illustrating diagrammatically our serpentine steam chamber andspring a), 'cross bar or guide if, in the valve casing V,

connections; Fig. 8, a sectional view of our combined supply and reliefvalve.

Our serpentine radiator coil S, is preferably formed of comparativelythin copper 'tubing of approximately one inch in diameter, and consistsof. the lower horizontal member s, which constitutes the steamgenerating chamber, and the upper downwardly inclined longitudinalmembers a, s, united by approximately semi-circular coupling sections .9of the same internal diameter as the aforesaid downwardly inclinedlongitudinal members 8', and the horizontal member s. The radii of thecoupling sections 8 are uniform and sufficient to properly space thelongitudinal members and insure a free flowof the steam upward from thesteam generating chamber 8, and of the water of condensatlon downward tosaid lower horizontal member 8. Before the downwardly inclined lonitudinal members .9, s, and the lower horizontal member s, are finallyunited by the coupling sections 8 sheet metal radiation plates 1, formedwithhub flanges 1", are forced upon them, so as to attain close contactbetween the tubing andthe hub-flanges of the radiation plates, andinsure the conductivity of the latter, which in form may be of disk orany other preferred configuration. Since, as illustrated in Fig. 7, thefinished serpentine coil S, constitutes to all intents and purposes, oneintegral piece and is subject to considerable variation in temperature,we

\ support it in such manner that it is free to expand and contract inany and all directions and thus preserve its structure and sha e. Tothis end various mechanical expetients may obviously be resbrted to, andin the accompanying drawings we have simply shown the longitudinalmembers a s, as resting on bracket shoulders a. forme on supportingstandards A, the said supporting standards constituting no part of ourpresentinvention which relates primarily to the serpentine coil S, andits connections.

The upper member of the serpentine coil S, is provided with a reliefvalve casing V, which may be used as a funnel, when the Valve 2, is h ldopen manually or. otherwise, so that water introduced into the saidvalve casing V, may flow into the steam space and down through thelatter into the lower or steam generating member s, of the coil S.Normally the valve i), is held closed by a interposed between it and theas shown in Fig. 8. The stem 'v, of the valve 42, passes through theguide '0 and may be provided with a handle 4), to facilitatemanipulation. In the event of the serpent-inc coil S, being subjected toan excess of internal steam pressure for any reason the valve '0, willovercome the resistance of the spring v, and yield sufficiently toafford relief, although this is more a matter of pre- I ume of water isintroduced into the coil that there is little or no possibility orprobability of dangerous steam pressure being generatedtherein since itis not proposed to introduce more than enough water to half fill thelower horizontal member s. For this reason a pet or test cock 7), isinserted in the end of the sald lower horizontal member s, by means ofwhich cock the level of thewater in the steam generating member 8, maybe ascertained and prescribed,the duct in said test cock opening intothe end of the generating chamber preferably just slightly above theaxial center thereof, so as to insure a steam space in the lower member8, above the level of the water therein, as illustrated in Fig. -7. Y

The water in the lower half of the lower member s, of the serpentinecoil S, may be heated to ebullition byany suitable means, preferably bythe use of a gas burner B, of

well known construction in which a jet of gas is mixed with airpreparatory to combustion. By providing the gas jet pipe with a suitablecock I), the combustion of fuel, and hence the amount of heat disbursedby our radiator, may be'regulated with accuracy to meet requirements,and in this respect our device is superior to an ordinary steam radiatorsupplied. with steam from an extraneous source. In other" words thereneed be no over-heating, nor waste of fuel, and a moderate or minimumamount of heat may be maintained with the-burner turned down low andvaporizing little if any of the water in the lower member of theserpentine coil, orv if the gas is turned full on steam may be rapidlygenerated, condensed and regenerated, and a maximum degree ofcirculation and heat attained and maintained,the water of condensationflowing in an unrestricted stream to the generating member and beingimmediately vaporized and projected upward into the serpentine steamspace to be again condensed and returned, and so on continuously withoutWaste of steam or heat. fact the full value of fuel heat mni'ts isutilized because the products of combustion mosphere, as they passupward around the inclined upper longitudinal members of the serpentinecoil, and between the radiation plates, drawing with them inducedcurrents upward air currents alternately in first one direction and thenthe other, retards the flow slightly and suflicient-ly to insure contactand abstraction of heat by convection as well as by reason of radiationor reflection.

The gas burner B, extends underneath the lower horizontal member s, andparallel thereto for its full length; and the radiation plates 7', onsaid horizontal member are formed as shown in Flg. 6, to straddle the,burner B, while extending beyond it on either side thereof, so as todirect and confine the products of combustion upward and to draw in theair to commingle therewith.

Our improved individual portable self generating steam heat radiatorpossesses advantages over the. water circulationradiator named, herein,and on which it is an imcoil being inclined continuously downward andinto the lower horizontal member, means for introducing water throughthe coil into said lower horizontal member consisting of a combinedpressure relief and water supply valve connected with the extreme upperinclined end of the coil, a test cock opening into the said lowerhorizontal member above the longitudinal axis thereof for the purpose ofprescribing the water level therein and thereby creating a steam spacein the lower horizontal member above the water level, a longitudinallyarranged as burner underneath and parallel to sai lower horizontalmember of the coil, and hub flanged sheet metal radiation disks forcedonto the peripheries' of the longitudinal members of the coil with theirplanes at right angles to the low gitudinal axis thereof whereby theradiation disks on adjoining longitudinal members of the coil areinclined with relation to each other for the purpose of deflecting aircurrents, the lower edges of the hub-flanged disks on the lowerhorizontal member of the coil being made concave to straddle the saidlongitudinally arranged gas burner, as shown and described.

2. A selflcontained portable combined steam generator and heat radiatorcomprising a sealed serpentine'i-coil of relatively small but continuousuniform internal diameter and surface from one end to the other, thewhole upper portion of the coil provement, in that it is much lighterwhen lower horizontal &

being inclined continuously downward and into the lower horizontalmember, means for introducing water through the coil into said lowerhorizontal-member, a test cock 0 en ing into the lower horizontal membera ove the longitudinal axis thereof, for the purpose of prescribingthcwater level therein and thereby creating a steam space in the lowerhorizontal member above the water level, a longitudinally arranged gasburner underneath and parallel to said horizontal member of the coil,and hub flanged sheet 'metal radiation disks forced onto the peripheriesof the longitudinal members of the coil with their planes at rightanglesto the-longitudinal axis thereof whereby the radiation disks onadjoining longitudinal members of the coil are inclined with relation toeach other for the purpose of deflecting air currents, as set forth. 7

3. A self-contained portable combined steam generator and heat radiatorcomprising a sealed serpentine coil of relatively small but continuousuniform internal diameter and surface from one end-to the other, thewhole upper portion of the coil being inclined continuously downward andinto the lower horizontal. member, means for introducing water throughthe coil into said lower horizontal member, a test cock 0 ening into thelower horizontal member a ove the longitudinal axis thereof for thepurpose of prescribing the water level therein and thereby creating asteam space in the lower member above the water level, a longitudinallyarranged gas burner underneath and parallel to said lower horizontalmember of the coil, and hub flanged sheet metal radiation disks forcedonto the peripheries of the longitudinal members of the coil with theirplanes at right angles to the longitudinal axis thereof whereby theradiationdisks on adjoining longitudinal members of the coil areinclined with relation to each other for the purpose of deflecting aircurrents, the lower edges of the hub-fiangeddisks on the lowerhorizontal member of the coil being made concave to straddle the saidlongitudinally arranged gas burner, as shown and described.

4. As an improved article of manufacture, a portable self-containedcombined steam generator and heat radiator comprising a sealedserpentine coilhaving its lower chamber substantially horizontal andconstituting a generating chamber-and the members above said lowerchamber being inclined continuously downwardly in alternately oppositedirections, means for heating the water in said lower chamber, andradiating disks on the longitudinal members of the coil, the disks oneach member being disposed substantially parallelwith each other and thedisks on adjacent members being oppositely inclined with relation toeach other.

5. As an improved article of manufacture, a portable self-containedcombined steam generator andfheat radiator comprising a sealedserpentine coil having its lower chamber substantially horizontal andconstituting a generating chamber and the members above said lowerchamber being inclined continuously downwardly in alternately oppositedirections, means for heating the water in said lower "chamber, andradiating disks on the longitudinal members of the ALVIN B. NEIMAN.ALBERT L. ADAMS.

\Vitnesses:

Josnrn J. SULLIVAN, LAWRENCE A. CURRAN.

